| "MUSIC TO MY EARS"  It begins at 6:00am. First the dogs start barking. Next, there is the sound of footsteps. Not in the hallway, not in the kitchen, not on the steps but on the roof. No, I am not talking about Santa and his reindeer either. I am convinced that Santa has a lighter step. The footsteps I speak of are made by 3-4 men who have come to work on the parsonage roof. They were invited to create their morning noises due to a wind storm that ripped many of the previous shingles from their nails. The first time they came and got up the roof at the crack of dawn it was unexpected. When they dropped their first pack of shingles onto the roof I thought a tree had hit us. Tiffany thought it was an earthquake. Now... It's routine. Instead of an alarm clock, we wake up to the hammering and nail gunning of the roofers. Their cacophony accompanies us through tooth brushing, breakfast, morning coffee, and going off to school and to work. The aspirin bottle is nearly empty but the routine has found a temporary (Dear God, let it be temporary) place in our lives. The great news is that the end result is a new roof! The means to an end can sometimes be challenging. I really need a new roof and desire one but would rather it just appear. Jesus reminds us in Matthew that work has to go into a life of faith. He ends the Sermon on the Mount with a parable of 2 guys who built houses. One built on rock, the other built on sand. They both want a new house but only one is willing to put in the work and sacrifice to make it last. He's the guy who built a house on a solid rock foundation. Jesus says that if you don't put my words into action you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on sand. He was lazy and in a hurry. It's the journey that makes life so incredible. Short cuts are not usually all they are cracked up to be. Short cuts usually mean that we are cut short of the experience that we need to grow from on the journey. Jesus wants us to take the long way around so there is more time for conversation and mentoring with and from him. The hammering "alarm" will most likely continue all week. But as I pop my Ibroprphen, I give thanks that I have a roof at all and then I go outside in my jammies and say high to the roofers. It's music to my ears. Sharing in Faith,
Rev. Craig W. Duke
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